The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-11-14
aBankinep Sweet Potatoes.

One drawback 10 the raising of sweet po-
tatoes in large quantities, where there is not
a profitable market for them as soon as dug,
has been the difficulty experienced by many
farmers in keeping them sound through the
winter Answering correspondents query
as to the best method of doing this, Mr.. D.
Redmond writes as follows in the Jackson
willie Netcs-Herold: Dig your potatoes, keep
ing them out of the hot sun and not allowing
them to get wet. Pile up in cool, shady
Mace and allow them to stand day or two
before banking. You may cover the pile
with thin layer of pine straw; or, if there
is any danger of rain, with thick layer of
straw and some boards. The old fashioned
s'bank" or "pumb" is the most convenient
and effectual mode yet discovered for keep
ing the sweet potato in our mild climate
and this is the simple process: Strike cir
Gle eight or ten feet in diameter in clean,
dry spot, dig a small shallow trench all
around outside of the circle, throwing the
earth from the trench inside of the circle
until YOU have raised the circle about a foot
above the ordinary surrounding surface,
then level the earth or circle with a rake or
hoe and spread all over it layer of dry
leaves or pine straw from four to six inches
thick.
You are now ready for banking" "Sort"
md size your potatoes into three piles
all that are cut and bruised for immediate
use. the small ones that are sound and unin-
iured for seed, and all the large and perfect
roots for banking" Each bank should be
provided with its pump" or ventilator,
which is simply four pieces of inch plank,
five or six inches wide, ana six or seven feet
long, nailed together so as to form a hollow
square, Then bore dozen scattered inch
auglr holes in your pump" from top to
bottom, set 1t up endwise in the middle of
your circle and pile your potatoes around it.
This serves as a chimney or ventilator and
keeps off the heat and vapor which arises
from the pile of roots after they are COW
cred up. The potatoes are very carefully
piled up in cone, from within six inches
of the outer rim of the circle, as high as
they can be carried, and it will be well to
measure as you progress and mark the
number of bushels in each "bank." From
- to % bushels make fair sized and con-
venient ''bank;;" when you have piled all
that stand up well, then cover the whole,
first with q thick layer of dry pine straw or
other litter dry, and when all are evenly
covered, commence banking" on the earth,
beginning at the bottom, of course, and lay
ing on carefully until you reach the top,
through which protrudes the pump" OF
ventilator. Be liberal with this outside coat
of earth" It's cheap as dirt" and should
not be less than six inches in thickness; in
deed, foot thick is far better and surer
protection against both frost and heat The
main object is to keep the potatoes of as cool
and equable temperature as possible, and
the thick coating of earth well packed on
and ''spatted" with the spade, will be found
an excellent non conductor. When the COW
ering is done the work is finally finished by
putting a rough shelter of cheap boards or
slabs over each bank, as a shield from the
sun and heavy rains Banks for family use,
to be opened during the winter should be
smaller, say eight or ten bushels, and the
large banks should not be disturbed until
spring. A loose wad of straw is sometimes
placed in the top opening of the ventilator,
as protection against cold; but if the banks
are sheltered this precaution is unnecessary